Report: How can 5G technology support the emergency services?

techUK has developed a new report on how 5G technology can transform and support the emergency services as part of #The5GFuture campaign week.

Our police, ambulance, fire and rescue services (the emergency services) rely on the ability to share mission-critical information between themselves and each other in order properly carry out their duties.

These communications have traditionally been focused on delivering critical voice data. But the advent of 5G presents an opportunity to transform emergency services communications, enabling them to share a much wider range of communications data. This will have a significant impact on effectiveness and efficiency.

techUK has developed a new report on how 5G technology can support the emergency services. This report looks at why 5G matters to the UK emergency services, along with use cases of the network within different places, such as in the control room, on the frontline and at the device level.

techUK is excited to be able to share this report and to highlight the importance of 5G and digital technology and the opportunities that can arise from them to ensure the UK becomes a digital leader.

In support of the report Julian David, CEO techUK said:

“Police, Fire and Ambulance services all adopted a common network after the King’s Cross fire of 1987 exposed the failings of different first responder teams with bespoke communication systems, none of which worked underground. The current network has delivered for decades, but new technology now enables the emergency services to deliver even more for citizens. This upgrade involves the implementation of a new Emergency Services Network, based on 4G technology, and will offer a considerable upgrade in performance.

However, 5G will deliver even more, providing officers in the field with access to CCTV footage and enabling them to file incident reports directly; as well as live stream from bodycams or drones to control rooms. techUK has worked with emergency services and their providers in our “How can 5G technology support the emergency services” conference to highlight what 5G can offer, and the aim of this publication is to summarise how 5G technology can transform and support emergency services communications today and what needs to be done to make that a reality.

Specifically, we must;

Develop standards for applications and software solutions so information shared will encourage innovation and consistency.

Provide sufficient investment in the Emergency Services Network (ESN) to ensure opportunities can be maximised.

Support allocated funding for 5G technology for frontline service workers within the emergency services.

Ensure that end users are confident the communication network meets their needs.

There is no time to lose to ensure that the UK Emergency Services have the best possible network and we look forward to working with Government to quickly deliver the benefits this new technology can offer.”

About techUK

techUK represents the companies and technologies that are defining today the world that we will live in tomorrow. Around 850 companies are members of techUK. Collectively they employ approximately 700,000 people, about half of all tech sector jobs in the UK. These companies range from leading FTSE 100 companies to new innovative start-ups. The majority of our members are small and medium-sized businesses.

techUK is committed to helping its members grow, by:

• Developing markets

• Developing networks

• Reducing business costs and risks

techUK is the trading name for Information Technology Telecommunications and Electronics Association, a company limited by guarantee.